AS an information and communication technology (ICT) professional, I am genuinely impressed by the way Zimbabweans are increasingly using social media platforms to educate one another about the Data Protection Act (Chapter 5:12) of 2021.
What is emerging across WhatsApp groups, Facebook timelines, X (formerly Twitter) threads and TikTok videos is not just online chatter, but a quiet civic awakening.
Ordinary citizens are beginning to understand, discuss and apply the law in their everyday digital interactions and the impact is already visible.
For many years, issues of data protection, cybercrime and cyber security were treated as highly technical matters reserved for lawyers, regulators and ICT specialists.
That reality has changed. Zimbabweans are now actively sharing excerpts of the Data Protection Act, explaining its implications in simple language and warning each other about the legal consequences of reckless online behaviour.
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This peer-to-peer education is reshaping how people engage with digital platforms.
What stands out most is the growing public awareness that the Data Protection Act does not operate in isolation. It covers critical aspects of cybercrime and cyber security, redefining acceptable online conduct and introducing clear accountability for misuse of personal data and electronic communication systems.
As this understanding spreads, it is effectively making sections 162 to 168 of the (criminal codification) traditional criminal framework almost obsolete in practice, not because the law has disappeared, but because behaviour is being corrected before it escalates into criminality.
This is a profoundly positive development. When citizens understand the law, enforcement becomes preventative rather than punitive. People are thinking twice before posting defamatory statements, sharing private messages without consent, impersonating others or weaponising social media for harassment and intimidation.
The knowledge that digital actions carry real legal consequences is fostering a culture of caution, responsibility and respect for privacy.
Equally important is the fact that this awareness is citizen-driven, not imposed from above. There has been no large-scale government publicity campaign explaining the Act in accessible terms.
Instead, Zimbabweans themselves have taken ownership of the law. They are interpreting it, debating it, correcting misinformation and holding each other accountable.
In a country where institutional trust is often fragile, this grassroots legal literacy is especially significant.
Social media, long-criticised for fuelling misinformation, polarisation and abuse, is in this case playing a constructive role. It is becoming a platform for public education, digital ethics and self-regulation.
This challenges the dominant narrative that social media is inherently destructive. In the right hands and with the right information, it can be a powerful tool for social progress.
From an ICT perspective, this shift is critical for national cyber security. Technology alone cannot secure digital systems, informed users are just as important as firewalls and encryption.
When citizens understand data protection principles, they reduce vulnerabilities, discourage cybercrime and protect one another from harm. Awareness, in many cases, becomes the first and strongest line of defence.
However, this moment should not be romanticised or treated as complete. Awareness must eventually be matched by consistent enforcement, professional training for law enforcement and the judiciary and clear regulatory guidance. Still, the direction is promising.
Zimbabweans are demonstrating that legal empowerment does not always need to start in courtrooms or ministries. Sometimes it starts in conversations.
This growing culture of legal awareness should not end with the Data Protection Act. Zimbabwe urgently needs the same level of public engagement with the Constitution of Zimbabwe.
Many of the abuses suffered by ordinary citizens unlawful arrests, intimidation, selective application of the law, suppression of basic freedoms persist largely because constitutional rights are poorly understood by those meant to exercise them and those meant to be protected by them.
If Zimbabweans applied the same curiosity, sharing culture and peer education to the Constitution as they are now applying to digital law, the constant abuse of countrymen and women would become harder to justify and easier to challenge.
A citizen who understands their constitutional rights is less vulnerable to intimidation and more capable of demanding accountability peacefully and lawfully.
An informed population is the strongest safeguard against both digital and physical abuse. The rise of grassroots awareness around the Data Protection Act shows what is possible when citizens take ownership of the law. Extending this approach to the constitution could transform Zimbabwe’s civic culture, strengthen democracy and restore dignity to public life.
What we are witnessing is not just digital awareness, but the early signs of a more legally conscious society. If nurtured and expanded, it could mark the beginning of a deeper national transformation one grounded not in fear, but in knowledge, responsibility and shared respect for the rule of law.
Mutisi is a local commentator. — Cell: +263772278161.